Policy Address

Promote Mental Health

192. The Government will extend integrated services based on a medical-educational-social collaboration model to promote mental health. Relevant measures include:

  1. formulating a stepped care model for mental health – We will develop a multi-disciplinary framework with tiers, from dealing with general emotional problems in the frontline to handling cases requiring follow-up and more serious mental illnesses cases. The framework sets out the roles of different professionals (such as teaching staff, social workers and healthcare workers) and their division of work in the provision of mental health services for cases in each tier, enabling them to work together and perform their respective roles smoothly;

  2. raising community awareness of mental health – An annual promotional theme will be set for the Mental Health Workplace Charter, and recognition will be given to participating organisations for achieving targets. We will also promote the 4Rs Mental Health Charter in schools to promote the mental health of students, teaching staff and parents in a more holistic manner;

  3. enhancing support for children and adolescents – We will extend and enhance the Three-Tier School-based Emergency Mechanism, and launch the "Mental Health Literacy" resource packages for senior secondary and lower primary levels. A real-time, online youth-emotional-support platform will be set up in the second quarter of next year;

  4. facilitating the integration of persons in mental recovery into the community – We will set up Transitional Support Service Teams for Persons in Mental Recovery, offering support to discharged patients waitlisted for halfway house service. The Social Welfare Department (SWD) will also set up an additional Integrated Community Centre for Mental Wellness; and

  5. strengthening teacher training and parent education – We will strengthen teachers' capacity in the early identification of, and support for, students with mental health needs, and assist parents in acquiring the knowledge and skills in addressing children's mental health.